1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to salt flavor enhancing compositions, food products including such compositions, and methods for manufacturing such products. In particular, it relates to salt flavor enhancing compositions, which include sodium chloride (NaCl), i.e., salt, in combination with potassium chloride and at least two magnesium salts, such that the total amount of sodium is reduced without significant degradation of salt flavor. Further, it relates to salt flavor enhancing compositions, which include potassium chloride and at least two magnesium salts, that may be added to products having intrinsic sodium levels or targeted sodium levels.
2. Description of Related Art
Salt or table salt, as those terms have generally been used, is added to processed and cooked foods to provide palatability and a desirable salty taste. It chemically consists of approximately 60% elemental chlorine and approximately 40% elemental sodium, by weight. Sodium, an essential nutrient, plays a vital role in maintaining concentration and volume of extracellular fluid.
From a dietary perspective, the blood pressure of a specific individual may respond differently to various levels of sodium. Family history of blood pressure, weight, age, physical activity, alcohol intake, and overall dietary factors, such as dietary intake of calcium, potassium, sodium, and fiber all play a role in affecting blood pressure. Some scientific evidence suggests that a more balanced dietary intake of sodium, potassium, magnesium, and other cations may beneficially affect blood pressure. Individuals, whose blood pressure increases when sodium intake is high or decreases when sodium intake is low, are called "salt sensitive." For those salt sensitive individuals, a reduction in total dietary sodium in take may be warranted. This may be accomplished through the use of low and reduced sodium compositions and food products.
To aid in reducing the level of dietary sodium intake, several low salt or salt substitute products have been introduced into market. Such products may include up to about 50% by weight of sodium chloride with the remainder replaced by potassium chloride or a magnesium salt, or a combination thereof. However, these products provide only limited sodium reduction. In addition, both potassium and magnesium add bitter aftertastes to food products, which many consumers find unacceptable. Further, these salt substitutes are generally for direct use on foods and in cooking just as individuals might use table salt. No known salt substitute satisfactorily reduces sodium in thermally processed food products below levels currently being marketed.
In order to reduce the amount of sodium, compositions have been formulated in which sodium has been partly or wholly replaced by other substances, which imitate the taste of the salt. For the purpose of reducing the salt consumption and sodium intake, while maintaining a desired degree of salty taste, potassium chloride and ammonium chloride have been used as a partial replacement for salt. Nevertheless, as noted above, potassium chloride generates a particularly bitter and metallic taste, and when added to foods, it may severely spoil and impair their tastes. A variety of countermeasures have been proposed to eliminate the bitterness caused by the addition of potassium chloride; for example, calcium chloride or magnesium chloride have been added to some low-sodium salt compositions, such as those described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 20 15299/1985. However, these measures have not produced satisfactory results, especially in processed food products. In addition, ammonium chloride also produces a bitter aftertaste and, at cooking and baking temperatures, ammonium chloride may decompose, thereby changing the pH value, taste, and other properties of food products which contain it.
The use of small amounts of magnesium, calcium, formates, and citrates in salt substitute compositions consisting primarily of potassium chloride has been proposed to mask or overcome the bitter taste of the potassium. However, these additives may cause the loss of the true salty flavor or the taste sensation associated with salt and may unbalance or otherwise negatively affect the taste of prepared or processed food products.
Thus, replacing sodium chloride by other chemical compounds involves several disadvantages. Additives which mask or overcome the undesirable tastes, e.g., bitter or metallic tastes, of common salt substitutes including potassium or magnesium, or both, may also adversely affect the food product's taste and palatability. Further, there are relatively few approved food additives, such as magnesium sulfate, which may accomplish this masking role.